Lynne Abraham
District Attorney, City of Philadelphia
Virtually everyday of my life over the past 30 years, I have borne witness to the consequences of violent crime on our population. More than the acts of violence themselves are the ripple effects visited upon every person who lives, works or visits here. Only violence of the kind we experience every day has the capacity to rob all of us of our feelings of personal security and well-being. Wider consequences are the economic impact crime has on our City's ability to attract new businesses and residents. College students, more often than not, tend to love our fabulous colleges and universities, but don't want to remain here in our job market, in part, because of crime.
More up close and personal, is the fact that last year we had 406 homicides, 85% committed by handguns and almost the same percentage of people killed were young to middle age black men. The greatest concentration of murder men were those age l6 to 24, with the next highest group being age 25 to 34. Most disturbing are the facts that for every gun fatality there are 5 nonfatal shootings, and the fact that there is very little difference between the killers and the killed. Furthermore, if we didn't have the first class trauma surgeons we have, the death toll would be much higher.
I don't believe we will see a dramatic shift in "gun control" Legislation either in this or other states, and definitely not any change at all in Federal gun laws. As a matter of fact, the extremely powerful gun lobby has so much power, that it is almost always coming up with ways to roll back any small improvements in even the most modest legislation on this subject. So, while we are considering ways to combat gun violence, let us not indulge in "magical thinking" that there will be any measurable changes anywhere in this country regarding gun control legislation.
For a start, let the City of Philadelphia do what it must by putting together the money to pay for a witness relocation program, something the city has refused to do for all of the time I have suggested this as a way to prevent people from being killed should they become witnesses. The "stop snitching" mentality so pervasive on hip-hop and other entertainment venues. Let's resolve to end marches for peace, and erecting balloon and stuffed animal "memorials" but refusing to talk to the police when they ask for help. or lying to them when we do speak, These and a host of other things that look like we are doing something but which are forms of doing nothing, must, instead, be replaced by a comprehensive plan of action.
More than putting police on the street, which we really need, will be required. Truth to tell, even new gun control legislation alone, won't end the violence. A rational, national policy of treating the epidemic of gun violence like the health care crisis that it is, with all of the attendant interventions, education and aftercare programs, is essential. Only if we start from the beginning, and craft national, regional, and local priorities and issues, will we stand a chance of success. Nothing can be off the table in this effort. Most important, women must lead this effort. I am convinced that women hold the key to the success of this series of interventions. After all, we are the moms who stand vigil over our children and are the stalwarts for advancing their needs. Let's do it!
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